They said 12 victims were undergoing treatment at the National Hospital, Colombo.

Over 145 houses were damaged in the incident that occurred Friday.

Hopes of finding survivors under a collapsed rubbish dump in Sri Lanka are fading as anger builds among residents who say their concerns were ignored. He said that those who had perished at Meethotamulla were all poor people.

The news came after more bodies were found following Friday's disaster at Meethotamulla on the city outskirts.

Police have launched a probe to ascertain whether the collapse was a natural calamity or an act of sabotage.

Authorities vowed over the weekend to shut down the dump, which has absorbed much of Colombo's rubbish over several years amid heavy construction and renovations in the capital.

"There is a land of 21 acres here covered with garbage piled over the years".

A Sri Lankan man affected by the garbage dump collapse assists military rescuers dig his buried house in Meetotamulla, on the outskirts of Colombo, Sri Lanka, Sunday, April 16, 2017.

Relief operations are carried out under the supervision of Security Forces Commander (West) Major General Sudantha Ranasinghe.

From time to time, people have barricaded roads, set fire to things, spoken to politicians, conducted sit-down protests. Another 11 people were injured in the disaster and 150 homes damaged, sparking fears that more could collapse.

The area is being sectioned in to three zones, and troops were able to rescue people and recover 19 bodies.

Military spokesperson Roshan Senivirathna told Reuters that survival was "very unlikely" but the rescue mission involving more than 1,000 emergency workers from defense establishments would continue.

"We had all plans in place to relocate the garbage dump at Meetotamulla".

MEETOTAMULLA, Sri Lanka (AP)  Rescuers were digging Monday through heaps of mud and trash that collapsed onto a clutch of homes near a Sri Lankan garbage dump, killing at least 29 people and possibly burying dozens more. The operation resumed again on Sunday. He added that step to provide compensation to the people affected by the collapse will also commence soon.

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